Cruel Reality
by WinnieCocoaFlip
Summary: She closed her eyes and willed it away, unable to accept the cruel reality. She was still weak, even though she thought that she had improved during the three years of training. And now they were gone, because she was still weak. How was she even alive? Where did they even come from? One-Shot Collection.
1. Cruel Reality

**Sakura** stared at the sight before her, unable to say a word. She closed her eyes and willed it away, hoping that maybe it'll go away once she closed her eyes. She opened her eyes again and tears formed for the fourth time once she realized that it didn't go away. She fell to her knees and sobs shook her body as she conflicted over accepting the **cruel reality**.

She was still weak. She was still weak after going on so many missions. She was still weak after going through the Chunin Exams the first time. She was still weak after training with Lady Tsunade for three years. She was still weak after the fight with the Akatsuki. She was still weak after the Fourth Shinobi War and still weak after all of those attempts to return Sasuke to the Leaf.

Where did _they _even come from?

Sakura slowly looked over the terrain and yet again refused to accept the **cruel reality**.

She thought that the training with Lady Tsunade made her stronger. She thought that Kakashi-sensei was impressed with her, and Naruto's, improvements after three years. She thought that she was capable of fighting the Akatsuki and taking on a B or even an A rank mission. She thought that she made it through Pain's invasion and the Fourth Shinobi War because she improved. She thought wrong.

How was she even standing after all of that? How was she still alive? How was she unable to protect them?

Sakura did it. Unable to hold it in, Sakura screamed. Wails flew out of her mouth as she cried. After several long years, she really hadn't improved from her genin days.

And now all of the other Konoha 11 members were gone, even Sasuke and Sai.

And it was all because she was weak.


	2. All Was Silent

**Lee** lay on the long-dead battle field, battered, bruised, bloodied, and breathing his last breaths. The pink-haired-girl's cries continued to echo and echo across the battle field, and Lee's already closed eyes winced slightly, not able to do much.

The battle field **was silent**… except for Sakura's cries.

Lee's senses **were all silent**… except for his hearing, hearing Sakura's cries.

Everyone on the battle field **was permanently silent**… except Sakura and her cries.

Lee, unable to speak or do much except wince in pain and lie there, willed Sakura to stop. Such an un-youthful sound was coming out of his youthful blossom, and it was terrible. The last thing he would hear at this rate would be Sakura's un-youthful cries of anguish, and Lee didn't want that. The silence of death wasn't much better, but he couldn't stand to hear his blossom cry at such levels.

But, there wasn't anything he could do. Lee was on the verge of death, it was a miracle he hadn't stopped functioning completely like the rest of the corpses on the ground. Thanks to _them_, this had all happened… but Lee hated doing such an un-youthful thing as blaming others for his mistakes, even on the verge of death.

Lee mustered every last bit of strength, took his last breath, and shakily raised his hand and in his raspy voice whispered, "Don't cry, Sakura."

His hand silently plopped back down as his breathing stopped and the blood finally stopped flowing. His last thought being a silent,_ "I'll finally see you again, Neji… Tenten, and Gai sensei."_

Before the last part of him died, the ever-enduring ears picked up the last thing he would ever hear:

**All was silent**.


	3. Empty Shell

**Ino**'s long-dead body lay outside the battle field behind the bushes as the pink-haired-girl's cries finally ceased.

Ino-pig had been killed before she could reestablish her friendship with the pink-haired-girl like she had always wanted to. She had been killed before she could see her little-pink-haired-girl friend blossom. She had been killed before she could apologize to others for her mistakes. She had been killed before she could say good bye to her teammates. She had been killed before she could say goodbye to her mother, the shop, her family, the other Konoha 11. She had been killed before the "ninja"-world could defeat _them_.

And now she lay on the ground, an **empty shell**.

_They_, however, had other plans. _They_ had been going over their victory and had chosen a test subject. _They_ gazed at the blonde-ponytailed girl that lay dead outside the battlefield. One of _them_ descended as a spirit, a bodiless spirit. Entering Ino's body, _they_ took the time to get used to their new ninja-human-clothes.

All was in order. _They_ willed Ino's body to sit up before feeling excess weight. Of course, _they_ had forgotten that he was in a female body.

Plop… off came the headband.

Plop… off came the medical pouch.

Plop… off came the various weapons.

Plop… off came the rather excessively long hair.

Ino's body then sat up and the spirit inside willed various body parts to move.

Yes, this **empty shell** would work perfectly. The spirit in Ino's body contacted the rest of _them_, "the test is a success."

And Sakura has yet to discover what a horrible **empty shell** her former friend has now become.


	4. They Were Everywhere

**Team 8** was sitting alone in a room of over a hundred people exactly thirteen days, thirteen hours, twenty minutes, and twelve seconds before Sakura's cries. How can one sit in a room with so many people, but still be alone?

The answer to this question was answered thirteen days, thirteen, hours, twenty minutes, and twelve seconds before Sakura's cries.

Shino Aburame, Hinata Hyuuga, and Kiba Inuzuka with Akamaru were sitting in a room in attendance of a funeral.

Kiba was alerted by Akamaru with a single bark upon smelling _their_ presence.

_Their _identity was unknown at the time.

Shino was letting a few of his bugs scout the room after hearing the bark.

There were twenty-one of _them_ in the room.

Hinata was activating her Byakugan as soon as she was alerted by Shino and Kiba.

There were twenty-six of _them_ in the building, forty-seven within a three block radius of the building, and over two-hundred in the village alone.

Hinata's Byakugan was picking up _their_ forms, simply unknown energy hiding under cloaks.

_They_ were dark, very dark, and _**they**_** were everywhere**.

Hinata was frightened, very frightened, especially since _**they**_** were everywhere**.

And everyone else was unaware, very unaware, of their presence.

The events were happening quickly, very quickly, so quickly that time could hardly catch up.

Kiba was yelling at the man behind him for kicking his seat, Shino's many bugs were caught, and Hinata and Akamaru could only watch as they discovered the secrets of _them_.

Needless to say, Team 8 was truly alone in a room with over a hundred people, especially when _**they**_** were everywhere** and ready to pounce.

Is it so obvious that Team 8 fell in a room full of people, but didn't make a sound?


	5. Breathe, She Couldn't

**Hanabi**, the young protégé of the main Hyuuga clan household, fought to catch her breath four days two hours and nine seconds after the pink-haired-girl shed her tears. Fighting to breathe, Hanabi hid in an alleyway off the main street in the Hidden Leaf Village.

It was under siege by _them_.

Fighting _them_ took way too much, and now **she couldn't breathe**. _They_ had contaminated the air, and Hanabi's flaw was pressuring down on her.

For the longest time, Hanabi had been without a flaw. For the longest time, she had surpassed Hinata, and had gained more respect than Neji had. For the longest time, her sister couldn't compare to her.

Now, Hanabi has a flaw. Now, Hinata and Neji were long dead and had gained far more respect and ability than Hanabi could. Now, she couldn't compare to her sister.

Why was she flawed now? Why couldn't she have been fighting for her life when she didn't have a flaw?

**Breathe, she couldn't**.

Still, she loved her sister and Neji, but they were dead. They never heard her say those words, and they were dead. They never would hear them. So, Hanabi settled for avenging them.

But **breathe, she couldn't**.

Asthma made it impossible for her to breathe now. Hanabi coughed. Her flaw developed in a mission gone wrong with the use of a poisonous gas.

Now, her flaw would cause her death. Now, her flaw would prevent her from avenging her sister and cousin. Now, _they_ descended upon her, going for the kill.

And it was because **she couldn't breathe**.

So it surprised her when she woke up in a dead medical tent, four days two hours and nine seconds later, alive.

And it was because she was saved by "a place in the sun."


	6. An Endless Cycle

**Tenten** fired weapon after weapon. She fired weapon after weapon three days eight hours fourteen minutes and forty-nine seconds before the pink-haired-girl's cries. She fired weapon after weapon on her way back from a mission. She was on her way back to the Hidden Leaf Village from a mission to relax, only to be firing weapon after weapon in a fight to the death.

She had no idea who or what they were up against. She had no idea where she was anymore. She had no idea what _they_ were doing and what _they_ were capable of doing. She had no idea whether the village was in the same chaos. She had no idea who was left. She had no idea whether anyone else was alive.

She did know that _they_ were far too powerful. She did know that _they_ weren't human, weren't ninja, probably weren't even from this reality. She did know that _they_ were gifted at assassinations, or whatever that weird ability was.

Weapon after weapon, no idea after no idea, thought after thought, it was **an endless terrible cycle**.

Jutsu? Oh, she wished. If she had the eyes of an Uchiha, she could do so much more. If she had Hinata's eyes, she could see _them_ and whether her friends were alive. If she had healing abilities like Sakura, she could revive her fallen comrades beside her. If she had any other ability besides her simple weapons or Taijutsu, she would fare so much better in this battle.

It was **an endless cycle**. And it would never end… until _they_ prevailed and her obituary was listed among over several thousand others in the newspaper.


End file.
